Electrically non-conductive materials for electrochemical cells

Abstract

Articles, systems, and methods related to the configuration of electrically non-conductive materials and related components in electrochemical cells are generally described. Some inventive electrochemical cell configurations include an electrically non-conductive material (e.g., as part of the electrolyte) that is configured to wrap around the edge of an electrode to prevent short circuiting of the electrochemical cell. In some embodiments, the electrically non-conductive material layer can be arranged such that it includes first and second portions (one on either side of an electrode) as well as a third portion adjacent the edge of the electrode that directly connects (and, in some cases, is substantially continuous with) the first and second portions. The electrically non-conductive material layer can be relatively thin while maintaining relatively high electrical insulation between the anode and the cathode, allowing one to produce an electrochemical cell with a relatively low mass and/or volume. The arrangements described above can be formed, for example, by forming a multi-layer structure comprising an electrode and an electrically non-conductive material layer (e.g., as a coating), and folding the multi-layer structure such that the electrically non-conductive material covers the convex surface portion of the resulting crease.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method, comprising:
 providing a multi-layer structure comprising:
 an electrically non-conductive material layer, 
 a substantially continuous electrode including an electrode surface oriented away from the electrically non-conductive material layer, and defining a first electrode surface portion and a second electrode surface portion; and 
   folding the multi-layer structure along an axis such that the first electrode surface portion faces the second electrode surface portion.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material layer and the electrode are in contact. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material layer and the electrode include at least one intermediate material between them. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein providing the multi-layer structure comprises positioning the electrically non-conductive material layer and the electrode adjacent each other to form the multi-layer structure. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrode is an anode. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrode is a cathode. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein positioning the electrically non-conductive material layer and the electrode adjacent each other comprises forming the electrically non-conductive material layer on the electrode. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first portion of the exposed electrode surface is in contact with the second portion of the exposed electrode surface. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first portion of the exposed electrode surface is spaced apart from the second portion of the exposed electrode surface. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising positioning a second electrode adjacent at least a portion of the exposed coating surface, wherein
 the first electrode has a first polarity, and   the second electrode has a second polarity that is opposite the first polarity.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrode is formed on a substrate. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the substrate is electrically conductive. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising applying an anisotropic force with a component normal to an active surface of the first and/or second electrode. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the electrical resistance between the first and second electrode is at least about 100 Ohms when a voltage of at least about 1 volt is applied across the first and second electrode. 
     
     
         15 - 83 . (canceled) 
     
     
         84 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material layer is covalently bonded to the substantially continuous electrode. 
     
     
         85 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the substantially continuous electrode comprises lithium. 
     
     
         86 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the substantially continuous electrode comprises sulfur. 
     
     
         87 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material layer has an average thickness of less than about 100 microns. 
     
     
         88 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material layer has an average thickness of less than about 10 microns. 
     
     
         89 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrically non-conductive material comprises a polymer.